Government of Canada Invests in Technology to Reduce Waste in Grain Bins

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwired - Aug. 27, 2013) - Canadian grain farmers will benefit from an investment in imaging technology that will help them reduce waste in their grain bins and improve their profitability, Parliamentary Secretary Pierre Lemieux (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell) announced today on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz.

"Our Government is making key investments in science and innovation to help grain farmers achieve efficiencies and earn more from the marketplace," said Parliamentary Secretary Lemieux. "This is an investment in new technology and innovation that will help farmers reduce waste in their grain bins by monitoring moisture throughout the containers."

The investment of nearly $300,000 will allow Winnipeg-based 151 Research Inc. to develop imaging technology to monitor the moisture levels in grain bins. The tests are being carried out by adapting microwave technology developed for use in the biomedical industry by the Electromagnetic Imaging Laboratory at the University of Manitoba. Preliminary results indicate that the technique is capable of detecting insect infestations and spoilage conditions that cause storage losses of up to 10 per cent in North America and up to 50 per cent in developing countries.

"We are extremely proud of the talent and expertise our research team and our partners, TRTech, Intragrain, Dr. Joe LoVetri's Electromagnetic Imaging Laboratory, and Dr. Jitendra Paliwal's Grain Storage Research Laboratory, have showcased in developing this novel real-time method of monitoring the moisture profile of grain stored in bins," said Dr. Colin Gilmore, co-founder of 151 Research Inc. "This fully automated system aims to provide global food security and is a major leap forward in stored grain quality monitoring and assurance."

This investment is being made through the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program (CAAP), a five-year (2009-14) initiative that helps the agriculture sector seize new opportunities and respond to emerging challenges.

Innovation programming will continue to be important as Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada works to help the Canadian agriculture sector adapt and remain competitive. The new Growing Forward 2 policy framework, which came into effect on April 1, 2013, will continue to drive innovation and long-term growth in Canada. In addition to offering a generous suite of business risk management programs, governments have agreed to invest more than $3 billion over five years in innovation, competitiveness, and market development.